Psychometric Tests for Recruitment: Are They Worth It?

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<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>
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<li>Employ psychometric tests with caution, if at all.</li>
<li>Always use them as an add-on to reviewing CVs, carrying out Structured Interviews and conducting Job Simulations – never on their own.</li>
<li>The main advantages of psychometric tests are: objectivity, standardisation, prediction and helping staff to be more self-aware.</li>
<li>The main disadvantages of psychometric tests are: lack of values, candidates’ reluctance to take them, over-reliance on results, limited accuracy and bias.</li>
<li>Carry out due diligence on any test you’re going to use.</li>
<li>Once you’ve chosen a test, give it to your existing employees first, use it alongside the standard recruitment methods and carry it out between first and second interviews.</li>
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What are Psychometric Tests?

Psychometric tests measure cognitive and personality traits and are sometimes used in recruitment. They should be used with caution and never as a substitute for reviewing CVs. When used sensibly, psychometric tests can add useful information to complement that gained from standard methods of screening and selection. 

But there are lots of tests out there at various price points, and it can take skill to interpret the results. As a SME you might be better off steering clear altogether, and focusing instead on making your CV shortlisting and interview procedures as robust as possible.

If you’re going to proceed with psychometric tests, using them at the right time is crucial. Too soon in the recruitment process, few applicants will complete them, and inexperienced hiring managers may use them to avoid making proper shortlisting decisions. Too late, and the results tend to be ignored because hiring a candidate feels inevitable. 

I recommend carrying them out between the first and second interview. Candidates are more invested in the recruitment process and so more likely to take them, and hiring managers can use test results to validate gut reactions and ask clarification questions during second interview. If you don’t need a second interview because you’re confident in your decision, then you don’t need a psychometric test.

Psychometric tests can be categorised into:

• Intelligence/IQ tests: Measure a candidate’s cognitive ability and potential for learning. This can be useful when you wish to invest a lot in training and want to ensure that new skills will be picked up quickly.
• Aptitude/ability tests: Measure a candidate’s innate ability to perform a particular skill or task. They often focus on maths, verbal comprehension, and diagrammatic or inductive reasoning.
• Personality tests: Look at character and emotional make up based on a psychological theory in order to predict how someone will respond in particular situations and how they work with others.

Generally, tests take 30+ minutes to complete, consist of a series of multiple choice questions and are done online or conducted by a trained tester. After the test, you’ll receive a report containing scores and explanations.

If you do decide that you want to use psychometric testing, then be aware of their advantages and disadvantages.

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Advantages of Psychometric Tests

• Objectivity: The tests are designed to give objective measures and so can help to reduce the effect of biases.
• Standardisation: Tests have usually been normalised on a large sample of people, allowing candidates’ results to be compared.
• Prediction: When interpreted carefully, tests can give an indication of how well a candidate is likely to perform.
• Self-awareness: The tests can help people better understand their own strengths and weaknesses in the workplace.

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Disadvantages of Psychometric Tests

• Lack of values: Tests don’t always capture people’s broader values, and values are a big influence on behaviour.
• Mistrust by candidates: Candidates may be reluctant to sit tests because they take time and effort and have no guarantee of a job.
• Relying too much on the results: Some hiring managers lean too heavily on tests when they should be using them in conjunction with other screening methods.
• Limited accuracy: Not all tests have been rigorously evaluated and some may have little predictive power in your recruitment situation. Results may be over interpreted by hiring managers, leading them to unwarranted conclusions such as assuming that extroverts are better than introverts at working in teams. Even the creators of the well-known Myers-Briggs test have stated that their measure can’t predict job performance and isn’t meant to be used in recruitment!
• Bias: Many psychometric tests were developed using particular groups of people such as Americans or white men and so may be biased against other groups.

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Best Practices

• Suppliers should provide the tool’s key validity and reliability indicators so results can be interpreted without having to bring in outside expertise. If you can’t understand the underlying principles of how it works, it is the supplier’s fault, not yours.
• Ensure you’re working with a credible and stable supplier that can provide good support.
• Suppliers should have tested on thousands of participants to make it relevant, and these should be a suitable ethnicity and diversity.
• Do the test yourself to ensure it is sensible, quick, and possibly even fun.
• Get your current employees to do the test before you give it to candidates. The results will give you a sense of whether the test is useful and accurate. It should identify your Great Performers and allow you to use your existing employees as a control group with which to compare your candidates. If the test doesn’t pick out your best people, then it probably isn’t going to be a reliable predictor of which candidates have the potential to be Great Performers. 
• Use the test alongside other selection methods such as Structured Interviews, Reference Calls, and Job Simulations. Don’t use the results to avoid making your own screening decisions.
• The best time to take a test is between the first and second interviews. It is most useful at this point because you can compare results with their interview answers and you can interview somebody again if it highlights something critical.

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<span class="purple-callout"><p>Just to mention – I'm available to offer advice and practical help with your recruitment (get your free consultation).</p><p>For example, I'll advertise a job on top UK job sites for just £199.</p><p>My best-selling talent acquisition book is another resource you'll find helpful.</p></span>

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Additional Resources

• Recruitment Book; The Secrets of Great Recruitment: How to Recruit Great Employees.
• Downloadable PDF guide; Exposed: The Pros & Cons of Psychometric Testing in Recruitment.
• Article; Psychometric Tests for Recruitment: Are They Worth It?
• Article; How to Shortlist Candidates for Interview and Avoid Costly Mistakes.